The NBA has turned down Turner Sports’ final bid to keep their broadcasting rights.
TNT expressed disappointment, suggesting the league may have misled them.
“We think they have grossly misinterpreted our contractual rights with respect to the 2025-26 season and beyond, and we will take appropriate action,” read a statement from TNT Sports.
On July 22, TNT said they had submitted paperwork matching one of the bids. However, the NBA stated that this proposal “did not match the terms of Amazon Prime Video’s offer,” which is reportedly $1.8 billion.
NBA announces that Warner Bros. Discovery did not match the terms of Amazon Prime and are agreeing to a longterm arrangement with Amazon.
โ Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes)
The language used by the NBA could be crucial in what happens next. If TNT can show they matched Amazon’s offer but were still turned down, things might get messy fast.
Ben Strauss from The Washington Post believes legal action is inevitable.
“Warner can now mull its options, including suing the league,” Strauss wrote. “One thing is certain: There will be lawyers and likely a lot of billable hours.”
Fans might think this whole situation is pretty dramatic.
When the 2024-25 season starts, TNT might be both broadcasting games and suing the league at the same time! Andrew Marchand and Ben Pickman from The Athletic think neither side wants this mess because private talks could become public in court.
“Neither side would likely want to enter a legal case where private conversations could become public during discovery,” Marchand and Pickman’s column read. “If TNT does file a suit, it could lead to more talks and a possible compromise with other NBA rights or financial possibilities being the outcome.”
New Broadcasting Deal:
Soon after rejecting TNT’s offer, the NBA announced an 11-year deal worth $77 billion for broadcasting rights starting in 2025-26. This new agreement keeps partnerships with Walt Disney Company and ESPN while adding NBC and Amazon Prime into the mix.
What do you think about all this?
